Washington win could be costly

Hearst news services

Updated 7:15 am, Monday, December 10, 2012

Photo: Patrick Semansky

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Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III is helped off the filed after an injury during the second half of an NFL football game against the Baltimore Ravens in Landover, Md., Sunday, Dec. 9, 2012. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky) less

Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III is helped off the filed after an injury during the second half of an NFL football game against the Baltimore Ravens in Landover, Md., Sunday, Dec. 9, 2012. (AP ... more

Teammates stood at their lockers, mixing the emotions of an improbable 31-28 overtime win over the Baltimore Ravens with the fear that their franchise player could be seriously hurt.

"We're happy that we won, obviously," left tackle Trent Williams said. "But that is concerning, knowing he went down."

Griffin went down during Washington's final drive of regulation Sunday, with the Redskins trailing by eight. Fellow rookie Kirk Cousins, who had played in only one other game this season, stepped in and hit Pierre Garcon for an 11-yard touchdown pass with 29 seconds remaining, then ran the quarterback draw for the 2-point conversion to tie the game.

Yet another rookie, Richard Crawford, returned a punt 64 yards in overtime to set up Kai Forbath's 34-yard game-winning field goal. The Redskins (7-6) have a four-game winning streak.

Griffin underwent an MRI later Sunday that showed only a sprain and no ligament damage.

The worst-case scenario would have been a season-ending ACL tear, like the one Griffin had while playing for Baylor in 2009.

"I'm not a doctor, but I know what an ACL feels like," Griffin said. "And it doesn't feel like an ACL."

Packers 27, Lions 20: The Green Bay Packers are a victory away from clinching the NFC North title after beating the Detroit Lions 27-20 on Sunday night. DaJuan Harris rushed for a score in his first NFL game, Aaron Rodgers added the longest TD run of his career, and Mike Daniels returned a fumble 43 yards as the Packers (9-4) opened a one-game lead over Chicago. The loss was the fifth straight for Detroit (4-9).

Browns 30, Chiefs 7: Rookie Travis Benjamin's 93-yard punt return touchdown gave Cleveland momentum, and the Browns won their third straight. Benjamin's game-changing runback helped the Browns (5-8) continue their resurgence under second-year coach Pat Shurmur, whose future in Cleveland remains uncertain. Jamaal Charles ran for 165 yards, breaking off an 80-yard touchdown run on the game's first play for Kansas City. It was the first road game for the Chiefs (2-11) following linebacker Jovan Belcher's suicide.

Panthers 30, Falcons 20: Cam Newton threw for 287 yards and two touchdowns and scored on a 72-yard run. Newton piled up a career-high 116 yards on the ground as the Panthers racked up 475 total yards. Carolina (4-9) came in with little to play for except to gain a measure of revenge on Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan, whom they felt disrespected them after Atlanta's 30-28 win earlier this season. Ryan threw for 342 yards and two scores and had a costly fourth-quarter interception.

Colts 27, Titans 23:Andrew Luck led Indianapolis back from a 13-point second-half deficit, and Adam Vinatieri made two fourth-quarter field goals. Luck now has engineered six fourth-quarter comebacks this season for Indy (9-4). It wasn't all Luck. Delone Carter cut the deficit to 20-14 with a 1-yard TD run on Indy's opening possession of the second half. And after Pat McAfee's 52-yard punt went out of bounds at the Titans 1-yard line, Cassius Vaughn jumped in front of Nate Washington, picked off Jake Locker's pass and scored on a 3-yard interception return to make it 21-20. Rob Bironas gave the Titans (4-9) a 23-21 lead with a 25-yard field goal, but VInatieri hit from 53 yards to retake the lead and from 40 to seal it.

Vikings 21, Bears 14:Adrian Peterson rushed for 154 yards and two touchdowns and Harrison Smith returned an interception for a score to lead Minnesota. Jay Cutler threw for 260 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions and couldn't finish the game for the Bears (8-5), who have lost four of their past five. He took a wicked hit to the head in the fourth quarter, remained in the game for the rest of that drive, but was replaced by Jason Campbell with 3 minutes to play.

Cowboys 20, Bengals 19: The grieving Cowboys rallied for a significant win. Dallas overcame a nine-point deficit in the closing minutes behind Tony Romo, who held his hand over his heart during a moment of silence to honor teammate Jerry Brown before the kickoff. Brown died in an auto accident early Saturday. Defensive lineman Josh Brent, who was driving, remained in jail in Irving, Texas, charged with intoxication manslaughter.

Chargers 34, Steelers 24:Philip Rivers threw three touchdown passes, two to Danario Alexander. The win was San Diego's first in 15 regular-season visits to Pittsburgh and snapped a four-game losing streak. The Chargers (5-8) dominated from the outset, never letting Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger get comfortable in his first game in nearly a month. Roethlisberger completed 22 of 42 passes for 285 yards and three second-half touchdowns. But he also threw an interception.

Eagles 23, Buccaneers 21: Nick Foles threw a pair of touchdown passes in the final four minutes, including a 1-yarder to Jeremy Maclin with no time remaining to end an eight-game losing streak — the Eagles' longest in 42 years. Foles completed 32 of 51 passes for 381 yards in his fourth start in place of the injured Michael Vick. The rookie threw an 11-yard TD pass to Clay Harbor with 3:55 remaining, then led the Eagles on a 64-yard game-winning drive after the Philadelphia defense forced a Tampa Bay punt.

49ers 27, Dolphins 13:Frank Gore ran for a 1-yard touchdown and reached 1,000 yards rushing for the sixth time in his career. Gore finished with 63 yards, Anthony Dixon also had a 1-yard scoring run and Colin Kaepernick ran for a late 50-yard touchdown and threw for 185 yards in his fourth straight start since being promoted over Alex Smith.

Seahawks 58, Cardinals 0:Marshawn Lynch had three touchdown runs, and Seattle set a franchise record for points. The Seahawks forced eight turnovers. Seattle (8-5) kept firm grasp on the final NFC wild-card spot and kept alive slim chances of catching San Francisco in the NFC West race. The effortless performance will only raise questions about Ken Whisenhunt's future as head coach.